It was presentation time at The Warren FC this afternoon as the club and its staff marked the end of the 2018-2019 football season.
Category:News & events
Pullman Express
My wife Julie had very kindly bought me a day trip on the Pullman Express as part of my 60th birthday events and so this morning we travelled to Victoria Station and made our way to Platform 2 where the Pullman reception lounge is located.
Media training
An MU team could be found at Kindred PR’s offices in Horseferry Road, SW1 today, as General Secretary Horace Trubridge, Deputy General Secretary Naomi Pohl, National Organiser for Orchestras Jo Laverty and National Organiser for Recording & Broadcasting Phil Kear and myself spent several hours in a media training session.
Comms survey
The MU’s Communications and Government Relations Dept met this afternoon to review the results of the latest survey into our communications and campaigns and how these are perceived by the members.
Music Declares
I attended a meeting on behalf of the MU this evening at offices in Euston, following an invitation from a group set up the banner of Music Declares Emergency.
Go karting 2
A busy day for Ben, as The Warren Reds FC had a friendly end-of-season match in the morning at Westerham FC, which proved an exciting sign-off to a few months of squad development.
Future Fusion
I was up early yesterday morning to catch the train from Paddington to Bath to visit the offices of Future Fusion and complete the quarterly edition of The Musician, the magazine I have edited since late 2004.
Team awayday
At least once a year, the Communications & Government Relations Dept of the MU take time out to share an ‘awayday’ and undertake a pastime close to one of our hearts.
Out and about
Early on Thursday evening I drove over from the MU HQ in Oval to meet long-term friend and producer James Reynolds at the Duke on the Green, in the New King’s Road. After a delicious cod and chips we walked over the Green to his studio, where we spent an enjoyable hour listening to new recordings by a number of rising artists.
Venue visit
My MU colleague Jane Austin and I drove to Brighton today to visit this summer’s Delegate Conference venue, the Metropole Hilton.
Bebel Gilberto
Mark Batchelor kindly booked tickets for us to catch a rare UK live performance by Brazilian/American vocalist and Bossa Nova specialist, Bebel Gilberto. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miúcha and has been performing in the family tradition in Rio since an early age.
Go karting Sunday
I was kindly given a present for my 60th by my work colleagues at the MU of 50 laps for a friend and myself at the multi-level 400m Go-Kart Track in Mitcham, south London, and so Mark Batchelor and I drove over to the site early this morning.
Record Store Day
I was kindly asked this afternoon for my contribution to UK Music’s page marking Record Store Day, set to take place across the UK tomorrow, and to recall either my first record purchase or my memories of record stores in days gone by.
Drake Yolanda Award
I could be found tonight at the excellent Under the Bridge venue, Stamford Bridge, Chelsea, for the inaugural Drake Yolanda Award event.
Ivors Academy
The Ivors Academy was launched this week, following the renaming and rebranding of BASCA, the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors.
StradFest
The Strad magazine in partnership with John & Arthur Beare Violins hosted the first ever StradFest at the Royal Institution, Albemarle St, Mayfair today. The event consisted of a series of workshops, presentations, seminars and exhibition stands across two floors, with the MU stand positioned outside the entrance to the main theatre.
BBC Introducing
My MU colleague Sam Jordan and I attended a planning meeting at the offices of the Music Publishers’ Association in Southampton Row this morning, at the invitation of James Sterling, Head of BBC Music. The meeting had been arranged to coincide with the launch of this year’s BBC Introducing Live event at Tobacco Dock, which is to run from 31 October to the 2 November.
The Musician (March)
The spring 2019 issue of The Musician magazine, the quarterly publication of the Musicians’ Union, is being dispatched to members this week and once again contains its award-winning mix of profiles, features, reports and advice.
Whatever you do
The MU launched a ‘Join for £1’ scheme in January and I have been busy booking full page adverts to publicise this discounted membership opportunity. Full display pages using the ‘Whatever you do – Join the MU’ design have been booked over a three-month period in a series of industry-related publications including Guitarist UK; Classical Music; Future Music; Bass Guitar; Rhythm; Music Teacher; Guitar Techniques; Total Guitar and PSNEurope.
John Edney
This afternoon I walked from Eden Park to Elmers End, so that I could attend the memorial service to orchestral trombonist, educator and MU activist John Edney at Beckenham Crematorium.
Showstopper!
Julie, Ben and I caught the train into town this afternoon from Eden Park to meet up with Lisa at Covent Garden station. We walked around the corner to Masala Zone and enjoyed an excellent meal, before Lisa and Ben headed for Charing Cross and home, while Julie and I walked to Shaftesbury Avenue where Julie had bought tickets for the improvisational musical show, Showstopper!
